Bruce Walker
Bruce has experience in the following areas
Real property
* Land contracts (termination, options, overage)
* Mortgages and charges (legal, equitable, priority, undue influence, mortgagee's
duties)
* Restrictive covenants (enforcement, removal or modification in the Lands Tribunal)
* Boundaries, adverse possession
* Licences
* Easements, profits (rights of way, water rights, rights of support, shooting)
* Trespass and nuisance (including tree roots).
* Co-ownership (express, constructive and resulting trusts, equitable accounting,
TLATA 1996).
* Proprietary estoppel.
* Adjudicator to HM Land Registry hearings.
* Professional liability
Reported cases and cases of interest:
* Oliver v. Burgess & Symons [2011] All ER (D) 250, [2011] EWHC B9 (HHJ
Behrens, High Court) - easements and boundaries, whether right of way
released, width and route of a right of way, whether gates an interference,
excessive user, boundary positions, pipe easement, right to connect into new
pipes.
* Thorkildsen v. Lovett 11/4/2011 (Adjudicator to HMLR) - Adverse possession of the
Tweed riverbank.
* Alexander v. Challenger 27/7/10 (HHJ Hodge QC, High Court) and [2011] EWCA
Civ 500 (CA) - appeal from Adjudicator to HMLR on issues of title, adverse
possession, registration and easements.
* Thompson v. Bee [2010] Ch 412, [2010] 2 WLR 1355, [2009] All ER (D) 223,
[2010] 1 P&CR D45 (CA) - whether a right of way derived from assents to 2
beneficiaries, or the will, construction of the grant, excessive user.
* Burnside v. Burnside 19/5/2010 (Adjudicator to HMLR) - rights of way and rights to
park by the rule in Wheeldon v. Burrows and section 62 LPA 1925.
* Rennison v. Mason 10/3/2010 (Sutcliffe QC, High Court) - beneficiary’s exercise of
a will option, to have the testator’s house appropriated to his beneficial interest,
whether timeous, whether sham.
* Muckley v. Farquhar 29/10/09 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - forgery of 2
transferees’ signatures, relevance of 2nd transferee’s signature if she had
no title when the transfer was originally made.
* de Wind v. Wedge [2008] All ER (D) 300, [2008] 2 P&CR D4, [2008] EWHC 514
(Patten J) - inter vivos gift of land, undue influence.
* Hardiman v. Imperial Homes 25/9/2007 (HHJ Kaye QC, High Court) - resisting
enforcement of restrictive covenant against property developer.
* Hawkins v. Anderson 1/11/2006 (Adjudicator to HMLR) - adverse possession of
domestic driveway.
* Re Bee 9/8/2006 (Adjudicator to HMLR) - construction of will to determine land
boundaries.
* Clarke v. Harlowe [2005] WTLR 1473, [2006] BPIR 636, [2006] 1 P&CR D31, [2007]
3 FCR 726 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - equitable accounting between beneficial
owners of land.
* Re Fairclough Homes Ltd 29/3/2004 (George Bartlett QC, Lands Tribunal,
LP/30/2001) - resisting application for discharge of restrictive covenants to
allow intensive development in prestigious location of North Leeds.
* Professional negligence of solicitors in advising on purchase by private
mortgagees.
* Creaser v. Garside 2002 – validity of sale by mortgagee to self and others.
* Advising high street lender on implications of the Land Registration Act 2002 for
their mortgage portfolio.
Landlord and tenant
* Commercial, agricultural and residential tenancies, licences and
service occupiers.
* Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 renewals.
* Agricultural Holdings Act 1986 including succession.
* Termination and possession (including surrender, forfeiture, relief and waiver,
disclaimer, exercise of break clauses).
* Covenants against assignment.
* Dilapidations.
* Rent review.
* Construction and rectification.
Reported cases and cases of interest:
* Agricullo Ltd v. Yorkshire Housing Ltd [2010] All ER (D) 147 (CA) - whether
landlord’s costs of pursuing tenant to effect repairs (by solicitor’s
correspondence and surveyor’s supervision) recoverable under s.146
costs indemnity clause in lease, after tenant had served counter-notice preventing
forfeiture.
* Pickard v. Howard 30/10/2010 (Agricultural Land Tribunal) - AHA 1986 succession,
principal livelihood, suitability.
* Marsh v. Robinson 11/8/2010 – LTA 1954 business lease renewal, whether
landlord could establish intention to occupy.
* Skidmore v. Kunz 22/3/2010 - Whether tenant had protection of Agricultural
Holdings Act 1986.
* Re Oscars Wine Bar, York 5/12/08 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - injunction against
tenant taking trading name to new premises.
* Hicklane Properties Ltd v. Bradbury Investments Ltd [2008] All ER (D) 248, [2008]
EWCA Civ 691 (CA) - tenant’s pre-emption in lease, rectification of valuation
machinery.
* Brewery’s termination of 16 leases and licences to recover land for development.
* Newcastle United v Nexus 3/12/2003 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - consent to
assign lease, reasonableness of landlord withholding, prime development
land in Newcastle city centre.
* Obtaining business lease renewal for a local A-level college in the face of a hostile
landlord.
Wills, trusts and probate
* Administration actions (beneficiary and trustee disputes, removing executors and
trustees, trustees’ duties and powers, distribution and winding up).
* Trusts in the home (express, constructive and resulting trusts, equitable
accounting, TLATA 1996).
* Probate claims (testamentary capacity, knowledge and approval etc).
* Claims under the Inheritance Act 1975.
* Ademption, satisfaction, election, deathbed gifts, promises to leave property by
will, setting aside lifetime gifts, undue influence and capacity.
* Construction and rectification of wills.
Reported cases and cases of interest:
* £3m professional negligence claim against solicitors for failing to draft will
expeditiously, and before testator died.
* Taylor & Nelson v. Ireton 22/11/2010 (Richards J) - deathbed gift of land.
* Rennison v. Mason 10/3/2010 (Sutcliffe QC, High Court) - beneficiary’s exercise of
a will option, to have the testator’s house appropriated to his beneficial interest,
whether timeous, whether sham.
* Thompson v. Bee [2010] Ch 412, [2010] 2 WLR 1355, [2009] All ER (D) 223 (CA),
[2010] 1 P&CR D45 - whether a right of way derived from assents to 2
beneficiaries, or the will, construction of the grant; excessive user.
* de Wind v. Wedge [2008] All ER (D) 300, [2008] 2 P&CR D4, [2008] EWHC 514
(Patten J) - inter vivos gift of land, undue influence.
* Halstead v. Beaumont 16/4/2007 (HHJ Spencer QC) - inter vivos gift of land, lack of
capacity, undue influence, unconscionable bargain, election.
* Clarke v. Harlowe [2005] WTLR 1473, [2006] BPIR 636, [2006] 1 P&CR D31, [2007]
3 FCR 726 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - equitable accounting between beneficial
owners of land.
* Porthouse v. Blacklock 12/8/2004 (HHJ Langan QC, High Court) - replacing
belligerent executor.
* Race v. Race [2002] WTLR 1193 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - application of
doctrine of ademption to gifts of land
* Ward v. Wrightson (New Law Online 202022801) - resisting Inheritance Act claim
brought against farmer’s son.
Commercial
* Contract claims
* Partnerships and LLPs.
* Sale of goods, agency, guarantees and bailment.
Reported cases and cases of interest:
* ASDA v. Farmers for Action 7/1/2011 (HHJ Kaye QC, High Court) - Injunction to
prevent demonstrators blockading depots.
* Lohia v. Clearpath Ltd 17/12/2009 (Central London County Court) - contract for
sale of shares in SPV (property holding company) terminated by vendor, method
of termination, whether exercise of rescission clause or acceptance of repudiatory
breach, consequential claim in damages flowing if acceptance of repudiatory
breach.
* Berrygate Hill Nurseries Ltd v. S&A Soft Fruits Ltd 16/4/2009 (HHJ Brown QC, High
Court) - £200k claim for commercial supply of strawberry plants, £500k
counterclaim for infected plants and lost business profits.
* Re Oscars Wine Bar, York 5/12/2008 (HHJ Behrens, High Court) - injunction
against tenant taking trading name to new premises.
* Appeal against trial judgment that sub-sub contractor was liable to main
contractor.
* Termination of £5m land contract by option, resisting challenge to expert
determination of value.
* Professional negligence of solicitors in advising on purchase by private
mortgagees.
* Creaser v. Garside 2002 - validity of sale by mortgagee to self and others.
Construction
* Court and arbitration claims.
Reported cases and cases of interest:
* Resisting claim against construction partnership for selling land without title,
obtaining rectification of prior conveyance from third party in order to provide title.
* Dispute over completion of works under agreement to renovate, subcontracted
under JCT.
* Arbitration on challenging certificates of practical completion.
* Challenging validity of notices of practical completion by litigation.
Professional Associations
Chancery Bar Association
Northern Chancery Bar Association
Seminars
Bruce has spoken on a variety of topics including restrictive covenants in freehold land, adverse possession, dilapidations and forfeiture, beneficial interests in property and those who fail to inherit.
Education
The Manchester Grammar School
Downing College, Cambridge University
Sheffield University
University of Westminster
Prince of Wales Scholar 1992 (Gray's Inn)
Prince of Wales Scholar 1993 (Gray's Inn)
Interests
Bruce enjoys skiing (he is a qualified ski instructor), mountain and road biking and sportfishing. His latest ambitions are to improve his surfing and pick up kite-surfing. He lives in Harrogate with his wife and two daughters.
